After obtaining a new sonic screwdriver in “Heaven Sent,” the Doctor was all set to ditch his sonic sunglasses on Doctor Who. But a new photo from the spin-off show Class shows that the Time Lord is going to retain his controversial eyewear for the foreseeable future.
After regenerating into his 12th incarnation in “The Time of the Doctor,” the Doctor wielded the same green-clawed sonic screwdriver that originated with his 11th incarnation. It remained until the events of “The Magician’s Apprentice” in which the Doctor ditched his sonic screwdriver after it gave him “bad memories” over an ethical time-travel conundrum involving a younger version of his nemesis, Davros. At that point, the Doctor started using his sonic glasses, which essentially performed all the same functions as the sonic screwdriver. For fans, the glasses didn’t gain universal praise, mostly because people missed the screwdriver. Still, this was far from the first time the Doctor was without a sonic screwdriver.
The 11th and 10th Doctors with their sonic screwdrivers in "The Day of the Doctor"
After the 12th Doctor’s memory of ever having hung out with Clara was totally erased, he seemed to get some of his mojo back and was issued a new, spiffy sonic screwdriver via the A.I. of the TARDIS. We saw him briefly bust out this new screwdriver in “The Husbands of River Song,” but not too much. In that episode, the Doctor primarily used the sonic sunglasses, mostly to disguise his true identity from River since — despite having a new face — she would have recognized him if he used the sonic screwdriver.
With all of these shenanigans behind him, you’d think the Doctor would be fully switched over to just the new screwdriver. But that doesn’t look to be the case. The new photo from Class shows the sonic glasses sitting side-by-side the new sonic screwdriver. From here on out, it looks like the Doctor is going double-sonic.
The cast of 'Class'
Though Doctor Who won’t return until December 25 of this year, the Doctor himself will have his next cannoical appearence in the BBC new spin-off drama, Class. Set at the Coal Hill School and featuring hardcore alien action, Class its being billed as dark and mature, making it more like Torchwood and less like The Sarah Jane Adventures.
The series premier of Class — featuring the 12th Doctor and his sunglasses — is happening on BBC3 in the UK on October 22, and in the U.S. sometime in the spring of 2017.
